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UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 05 PARTO 041407
SIPDIS
E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: OVIPPRELEAIDAFNL
SUBJECT: Conference on Afghanistan, March 31, 2009, The
Hague
¶1. SUMMARY: This cable summarizes -- by theme --
statements by national delegations and NGOs during the
March 31 Afghanistan Conference in The Hague. The
Secretary and the UN Special Representative both used
the event to bring the international community together
around the U.S. strategy and to move to implementation.
Key themes included commitments to Afghanistan,
security, civilian-military cooperation, regional
cooperation, elections, development, Afghan leadership,
reconciliation with insurgents, narcotics trafficking,
and corruption. END SUMMARY.
¶2. BACKGROUND: Entitled "International Conference on
Afghanistan: a Comprehensive Strategy in a Regional
Context," the event was organized by the UN, the
Netherlands, and Afghanistan, and hosted in The Hague on
March 31. More than eighty countries and international
organizations participated. UNSYG Ban and Special
Representative Eide led the UN delegation. Afghan
President Karzai and FM Spanta led the Afghan
delegation. Dutch PM Balkenende, FM Verhagen, and
Development Minister Koenders spoke for the Netherlands.
Secretary Clinton led the U.S. delegation and used the
conference to explain the conclusions of the recent U.S.
strategic review of the region and to engage in
bilateral discussions (reported septel).
¶3. BACKGROUND, continued: Additional materials on the
conference and full statements for many nations, including
the Chairs' concluding statement, are available on the
conference website, afghanistanconference2009.minbuza.nl.
An audio file of the Secretary's intervetion is available at
http://afghanistanconference2009.minbuza.nl/g sp.dll?sid=
266&pid=1&p_menuid=47&p_parentmenuid=2. Dutch media and
political reaction to the cable will be reported septel.
U.S. meetings on the margins are also reported septel.
¶4. UN Representative Kai Eide used his opening and
closing statements to strike two themes. His first was
"enough gloom and doom;" let's identify programs that
work and build on them. Second, he looked to identify
real priorities among the many goals of previous
conferences, and the statement he issued at the end of
the conference reflected these key targets in the major
baskets. Secretary Clinton hit the same notes in her
remarks and her private meetings, talking to both
President Karzai and Foreign Minister Qureshi about
developing work plans and implementation groups to carry
the now-agreed strategy.
----------------------
KARZAI CLAIMS PROGRESS
----------------------
¶5. Afghan President Karzai described the progress made
in the past seven years, claiming Afghanistan has "been
on the forefront of removing terrorism," developed
newfound freedoms of speech and politics, and witnessed
the return of five million refugees. He welcomed
President Obama's Afghanistan-Pakistan proposal and said
he is fully committed to partnership with the United
States and international community. Karzai cited four
specific areas where the Afghans will need continued
help: security; development; rebuilding; and
reconciliation.
¶6. On security, Karzai stated the need to isolate,
reform, or remove parties that support terrorism. To
accomplish this, he asked for an urgent increase in the
PARTO 00000007 002 OF 005
size of the police force. Karzai identified sustainable
development as an effective means of combating
terrorism, noting that agriculture and energy should be
top priorities. He pledged to root out corruption and
said special Afghan intelligence and justice units were
being formed to combat corruption, and would include
government officials up to the cabinet level as targets.
Karzai claimed progress had been made in addressing
poppy cultivation but acknowledged problems remained in
areas outside of the government's control.
----------------------------------------
FINANCIAL, TROOP, AND OTHER COMMITTMENTS
----------------------------------------
¶7. Although conference organizers noted this was not a
pledging conference, several countries committed to
assisting Afghanistan. China mentioned that it would
provide an extra $75 million over the next five years,
and Spain said it would contribute a total of $120
million from 2010 to 2012. Germany mentioned
contributing additional funds, but did not specify a
dollar amount. Some countries, such as Bosnia and
Herzegovina, New Zealand, and Latvia, discussed the
possibility of increasing troop involvement. Many
countries, including Australia, Germany, Turkey, the
Former Republic of Macedonia, and the European Union
Commission, affirmed the importance of contributing to
military and police training. There were general
affirmations of support from countries like France,
which made an important gendarmerie proposal, and South
Korea.
¶8. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) called for
Afghanistan to develop a sustainable revenue base and
pledged to help "modernize" the country's revenue
generation. The IMF noted that donors could not fill
the revenue gap forever. The Islamic Development Bank
said it would extend short, medium and long term
financing.
¶9. Several countries mentioned non-financial
commitments. Albania discussed offering scholarships to
Afghanis studying medicine in Albania. Kazakhstan is
working on completing railroad transit agreements for
non-military support. Japan said it would provide
assistance in the areas of security, political process,
and economic development as well as partnering with the
Provincial Reconstruction Teams (PRTs).
--------
SECURITY
--------
¶10. Many countries highlighted security as a pressing
concern. France, Japan, the European Commission and the
UN agreed with the United States on the need to improve
Afghan capacity through training with partners, an
increase in the number of police, and more cooperation.
Many participants spoke of moving toward an Afghan
military and police force that could ultimately be
responsible for providing its own security.
¶11. Another theme was promoting security through non-
military means. Pakistan, China, and Iran spoke of
addressing the root causes of terrorism through programs
targeted at development, reconciliation, and social
welfare. Iran emphasized that extremism has nothing to
do with culture, religion, or faith. In addition,
PARTO 00000007 003 OF 005
Portugal and Turkey, among others, spoke of the military
as an important piece of the solution, but by no means
the entire solution.
----------------------------
CIVILIAN-MILITARY COOPERATION
----------------------------
¶12. There was a consensus that civilian and military
efforts needed to be integrated, a point emphasized by
Australia, Indonesia, the Netherlands, Bulgaria, Russia,
and the UK. Russia stated that financial aid and
assistance should be used in a way that combined anti-
terrorism and socio-economic measures. The UK and the
Netherlands focused on the need to expand civilian
expertise, in what the Netherlands called "a civilian
surge."
-----------------
REGIONAL APPROACH
-----------------
¶13. Delegations agreed that any strategy for
Afghanistan must address Pakistan and other neighboring
states. Many states, including Russia, Pakistan,
Turkey, and Iran, agreed that the instability in
Afghanistan threatened and affected the entire region.
These states called for cooperative and recurring
dialogues between the major players, especially Pakistan
and Afghanistan.
---------------------
FREE & FAIR ELECTIONS
---------------------
¶14. Another point of agreement was that upcoming
presidential elections needed to be free, fair, and
transparent. Secretary Clinton announced a U.S.
contribution of $40 million for elections. European
Union Commissioner Ferraro-Walder announced 40 million
Euro. Australia, Germany, the UK, Switzerland, the
European Union Commission, NATO and the UN emphasized
their support for the elections process through
financial assistance, election monitors, and troops to
provide security. Slovakia said the international
community had an obligation to provide security for the
elections. China stated the international community
needed to respect the choice that the Afghans made
through the electoral process.
---------------------------
DEVELOPMENT AND AGRICULTURE
---------------------------
¶15. Support for new facilities and infrastructure, like
roads, schools, airports, hospitals, and irrigation,
especially in rural areas, was widespread among the
delegations. Germany supports renovating and rebuilding
the Mazar-i-Sharif airport, and training civilians in
communications and navigation technology. The
participants generally agreed that development should
encourage the Afghans to achieve economic self reliance.
¶16. The U.S. and other states also expressed support
for agricultural initiatives, with Germany calling it a
priority. The European Commission, in particular,
stressed the importance of agriculture as an alternative
to combat and poppy cultivation.
PARTO 00000007 004 OF 005
-----------------
AFGHAN LEADERSHIP
-----------------
¶17. Many countries stated that Afghanistan's government
was ultimately responsible for its future. Iran,
France, Pakistan, Portugal, Brazil, and the Netherlands
made the point that the Afghans needed to make their own
choices as a society about what programs and assistance
they needed, and that the Afghans should be encouraged
to take ownership of security, development,
reconstruction, and other areas as they became ready.
--------------
RECONCILIATION
--------------
¶18. Reconciliation was not mentioned in great detail,
but countries seemed to agree that it was possible to
segregate extremists from those who might be willing to
reconcile. Russia said that former Taliban needed to
make a clear break with Al-Qaeda and pledge to support
the Afghan Constitution and laws. Pakistan stated that
a genuine dialogue and inclusive politics would go a
long way toward encouraging reconciliation. The
Organization of the Islamic Conference condemned
terrorism as against Islamic teachings and pledged to
hold a conference.
---------------------
NARCOTICS TRAFFICKING
---------------------
¶19. Russia, Iran, Kyrgyzstan, Japan, and Colombia all
weighed in on this issue. Russia appealed to all states
to help stop narcotics trafficking, while Iran mentioned
the need to monitor the border. Colombia brought up the
need to break the links between narcotics trafficking
and terrorism. Japan mentioned the need for Iranian
help. UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said that opium
production should be fought with subsidies for
traditional agricultural commodities.
----------
CORRUPTION
----------
¶20. States agreed with the Secretary's position that in
the long-term, corruption could be just as dangerous to
success as the Taliban or al-Qaeda. France proposed
creating a map of international aid to enhance
oversight, while the European Commission brought up the
need to reform the judiciary. Canada emphasized the
need to restore the rule of law.
----------------
OTHER APPROACHES
----------------
¶21. China and Indonesia both emphasized that in
supporting Afghanistan, countries needed to respect its
independence, sovereignty, and territorial integrity.
Turkey called on the UN to do more, although it did not
specify what. Other countries called for a new
approach, with Spain saying a "Marshall Plan" was
needed, and the Netherlands called for a "new deal"
between Afghanistan and the international community.
Finally, Kyrgyzstan proposed the creation of an
international analytical center to assess and implement
PARTO 00000007 005 OF 005
programs, hold negotiations, and engage the Afghan
government in projects.
-----------------------------------
OVERVIEW OF STRATEGIC INTERVENTIONS
-----------------------------------
¶22. UN:
-- UNSYG Ban called on nations to honor their previous
commitments to Afghanistan, deploy additional troops to
secure upcoming elections and train Afghan forces,
improve food security, improve governance, and protect
human rights.
-- Ban's Special Representative, Kai Eide, called on
conference participations to affirm their support for
the Afghan development and democracy, improve regional
cooperation and coordination, and set clear priorities
for sustainable progress.
¶23. Netherlands:
-- PM Balkenende noted the delegates' presence "sends a
powerful message of hope and confidence."
-- FM Verhagen noted the international community was at
a crossroads, requiring the preparation of a new
Afghanistan Compact. He called for improved security,
governance, development, and regional cooperation.
-- Development Minister Koenders cited progress in
improving the quality of life of the people in
Afghanistan, called for better coordination among allies
and regional partners, and urged a "civilian surge" to
expand development efforts.
¶24. China:
-- D/FM Dawei Wu called for respect for Afghan
sovereignty while combating terrorism, supporting
development, supporting elections and respecting the
will of the Afghan people, and expanding regional
cooperation.
¶25. India:
-- Special Envoy Lambah called for credible elections,
reconstruction led by Afghanistan, combating terrorism
and narcotrafficking, and expanding regional
cooperation.
¶26. Pakistan:
-- FM Qureshi called for respect for national
sovereignty, reconciliation, close cooperation with
local populations to win hearts and minds, promotion of
social welfare, capacity building for security forces,
and fighting narcotrafficking and weapons smuggling.
¶27. Iran:
-- D/FM Ahkundzadeh called for coordinated measures
against narcotrafficking, combating the root causes of
terrorism such as poverty, strengthening regional
cooperation, Afghan involvement and responsibility in
its own affairs, and reconstruction. He also argued
that additional troops would "ineffective."
CLINTON